I'm currently working on a unit about the history of modern art. This goes right along with it.

I'm using a new picture book Mousterpiece to introduce students to modern art. From there we'll go into illustrators and how picture book illustrators are often doing some of the best new art out there. This will coincide with the Caldecott announcement in January.

Thanks for posting! I'm the artist here and, as many have seen, the layout may not be quite true to reality. The piece is created for a dear friend who just left Madison as a way to always keep it in his mind (and home). The objects and places are all taken from a list made by the friend, placed onto the piece in a "stream-of-consciousnes" approach to better depict the personal and unique memory of the place rather than the actual layout. The idea was to create a version of Madison seen through his eyes, unique to his experience.

It's also still in progress so feel free to check in for updates. All comments are greatly appreciated! more work at marioncart.tumblr.com

Artists need to stay away from using multisyllable words. Without knowing that the work is entitled "Madison," this art explains nothing. Only the capital dome (that can be found after some searching) is seemingly the only connection to the name "Madison."

But if the artists ego has been enhanced, then "Madison" it is. Daniel Fleming can remain proud smug and proud. He and Barry would probably get along well together.

Gadfly, Being that it's supposed to reflect the personal memory of the town of the person that commissioned the piece, it doesn't have to scream Madison to every individual that sees it. That's kind of the point. Furthermore, there are various objects within the piece that could be dissected if you know the town or put in some effort. If the capitol is all you could find that signifies Madison, either you and my friend have very different ideas of what defines Madison or you didn't look very hard. However, you're free to dislike the work...I find it funny that someone else's interpretation of a city would ruffle your feathers so much and require childish responses.

Proportion isn't random? Cool- evocative of a Saul Steinberg New Yorker cover. Composition and groupings are dynamic and visually appealing. I like the depth the raw background adds to the flat chalk drawings. Well done.

Thanks for all comments, good and bad. All feedback is appreciated.Feel free to check out the following blog to see more of my work and let me know about any questions, comments, or ideas for a piece of your own, Thanks.

Again, Thanks for the comments...To comment on the geography or lack-there-of, this is the first piece of this type that has been based off of a real location instead of dream imagery or storytelling such as the following piece (http://marionart23.blogspot.com/2012/11/new-and-sold.html) so it's a been a bit of a learning curve to get the personalization along with the right amount of recognizable structure. I just started a similar project that is based around the idea of a "primitive schematic" of an old car which would be a bit more true to reality in terms of placement of the objects, and I'd also like to continue this concept with more locations...a cemetery being one that i think would translate well. I'm definitely looking forward to creating some pieces that keep the layout more true to reality, but with this first piece, I felt the extreme personalization fit best with my experiences in Madison, along with how the friend (who the piece ultimately has to please) tends to remember the city.

Thanks Deborah. it's a recent favorite of mine as well. "We Are Giants" is finally coming home tonight after an extended two month showing. It holds a wonderful spot on the studio walls waiting for a good home!

Are those drawn with a mouse or with a paint brush? It makes a big difference.

I drew a map on the computer using a mouse, or the button that serves for a mouse on a Toshiba.

Several actually, but once was for a map to a friend's house in an adjoining county. It's basically a straight shot so naturally I drew it as spaghetti bowl of confusing intersecting irrelevant roads and filled with irrelevant sights along the way that could not help a traveler relying on it, like corn field, yellow house, dog peeing on hydrant, grass growing at base of signs, Halloween haunted house, and fences. It was a joke. I added everything I could recall along the way that was interesting to me but unhelpful map-wise and put it in a nearly appropriate spot somewhere in the spaghetti bowl of towering roads.

It was an email attachment and I forgot about it. And I had no idea that it took six pages taped together when printed to form a very tall scroll. But those people then thought I was totally retarded about roads and directions and such and now they never invite me without also providing a driver, another guest to swing by and get me and then bring me home.

I don't know if this is an advantage or not because I don't know how many things I'm missing due to lack of willing driver.

MarionI'm a dick when it comes to art, but I like it. That said, I wouldn't know a drawing of Madison from Topeka. I assume those bottles represent drinking establishments. If so, then I do know that there are far more bars in close proximity to the Madison capital than Topeka's. That explains a lot.

In case people are wondering, the piece is 36x48" and is acrylic paint with oil pastel drawing on top. The pastel gives a great impression of chalk on a black acrylic surface but doesn't wipe away as easily. I'll post a link to the finished piece tomorrow.

Howard, nice image! I think that a more goegraphically-minded piece based on a vintage image like that would be fantastic. Being the first try at a city-based piece like this, I think going that direction could lead to some very different and interesting effects and reaction for future work. The concept sort of started with this simple piecebased on a kitchen mid-soup preparation,

so you can see that I started from a very random set-up...I'm really liking the complexities naturally built into the city layout, though, and moving toward a more accurate depiction is definitely going to come through in new work...thanks for the link and feedback, everyone.